Spinal diagnostic methods and apparatus
First Claim
1. A method for placement of a catheter in an intervertebral disc comprising:
- percutaneously inserting a distal portion of a catheter into the intervertebral disc, wherein the catheter comprises an outer shaft, an inner shaft, and an anchor, the anchor having a proximal end coupled to the outer shaft and a distal end coupled to the inner shaft, wherein the inner and outer shafts are concentric; and
releasing the anchor from constraint to anchor the distal portion of the catheter in the intervertebral disc.
6 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Methods, devices and systems facilitate diagnosis, and in some cases treatment, of back pain originating in intervertebral discs. Methods generally involve introducing one or more substances into one or more discs using a catheter device. In one embodiment, a patient assumes a position that causes back pain, and a substance such as an anesthetic or analgesic is introduced into the disc to determine whether the substance relieves the pain. Injections into multiple discs may optionally be performed, to help pinpoint a disc as a source of the patient'"'"'s pain. In some embodiments, the catheter device is left in place, and possibly coupled with another implantable device, to provide treatment of one or more discs. A catheter device includes at least one anchoring member for maintaining a distal portion of the catheter within a disc.
172 Citations
19 Claims
-
1. A method for placement of a catheter in an intervertebral disc comprising:
-
percutaneously inserting a distal portion of a catheter into the intervertebral disc, wherein the catheter comprises an outer shaft, an inner shaft, and an anchor, the anchor having a proximal end coupled to the outer shaft and a distal end coupled to the inner shaft, wherein the inner and outer shafts are concentric; and releasing the anchor from constraint to anchor the distal portion of the catheter in the intervertebral disc. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
-
-
8. A method comprising:
-
percutaneously inserting a distal portion of a catheter into an intervertebral disc, wherein the catheter comprises an outer shaft, an inner shaft, and an anchoring member, the anchoring member having a proximal end coupled to the outer shaft and a distal end coupled to the inner shaft, wherein the inner and outer shafts are concentric; and deploying the anchoring member within the intervertebral disc. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
-
-
14. A method comprising:
-
percutaneously inserting a distal portion of a catheter into an intervertebral disc through a split-away introducer device, wherein the catheter comprises an outer shaft, an inner shaft, and an expandable anchor, the expandable anchor having a proximal end coupled to the outer shaft and a distal end coupled to the inner shaft, wherein the inner and outer shafts are concentric; and removing the split-away introducer device. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
Specification